“So, you are retired?”

“No…”

“But your article is titled, ‘Retirement.’”

I’m training for my sixth Ironman triathlon.

The last time I did this 140.6 mile race, I swore that I was never going to do this again.

(So, you are retired?)

No.

(Ok, now I’m confused.)

You, half my readers, members of the UN Security Council…

(The UN Security Council?)

It’s a long story, but I digress.

In 2017, walked away from Ironman triathlon, but not triathlon.

(What is the difference?)

I thought we had been over this?

(We had, but that was a long time ago.)

A triathlon is a race with three parts to it: swimming, biking, running.

An Ironman is the longest version of a triathlon.

(Isn’t there a double Ironman?)

Yes, but don’t tempt me.

My point was that a marathon is hard to train for…

(and run)

And run. It is even more difficult when you have to swim 2.4 miles and bike 112 miles first.

(So, it takes a toll on your family?)

No, they are sleeping when I do most of the training.

(So, it takes a toll on your body?)

No, I subscribe to the belief that if you do a tough workout, you take the next day off as a recovery.

Bike and a short run on Sunday.

Swim on Monday.

Short bike in the house on Tuesday.

Long run on Wednesday.

Short bike in the house on Thursday.

Long swim on Friday.

Rest on Saturday.

(Where was the “next day off as recovery”?)

The Tuesday and Thursday.

(How is a “short” bike ride a recovery???)

Forty five minutes on the bike, in the house, on the trainer is a workout, but it doesn’t leave me dead, like a four hour run or a 90 minute swim.

(So, what part of the training do you find difficult?)

Training has been mentally hard for me. Getting up in the middle of the night to train wasn’t the issue, it was the lack of human contact, until now.

This was the first year that I truly enjoyed being alone for a 4-hour run. Running was always a struggle. I would “hit the wall” at a certain point. It might have been 16 miles; it might have been 19 miles. Once I hit that that imaginary wall, I was walking.

(What changed?)

Cycling two to three times a day, in the house, for 45 minutes has improved my running.

(At 1 a.m.)

Yes, at 1 a.m.

(Remind me again, why don’t you sleep?)

I have reached the age where I wake up at 1 or 2 a.m. in the morning.

(Why don’t you go back to sleep?)

If I could, I wouldn’t keep registering for Ironman triathlons.

By David Roher

David Roher is a certified marathon and triathlon coach. He is a multi-Ironman finisher and a veteran special education teacher. He can be reached at: TriCoachDavid@